Control means for fluid feed lines



Sept. 28, 1965 M. NANNI 3,208,648

CONTROL MEANS FOR FLUID FEED LINES Filed Sept. 22. 1964 FIG. 2

MARTIN NANNl JOHN P, CHANDLER HIS ATTORNEY.

United States Patent 3,208,648 CONTROL MEANS FOR FLUID FEED LINES MartinNanni, 2 Darwood Place, Mount Vernon, NY. Filed Sept. 22, 1964, Ser. No.398,348 1 Claim. (Cl. 222464) This invention relates to control meansfor fluid feed lines and relates more particularly to a novel cut-offmeans for feed lines which deliver fluid from a tank, and wherein thefluid is withdrawn from an area close to the liquid level.

I have described in my co-pending application Serial No. 274,085, nowPatent No. 3,172,581, a novel fluid withdrawal means for tanks whereinthe delivery conduit moves up and down with the liquid level so that, inthe case of an oil tank for domestic heating use, only the top leveloil, which is clean, clear and free from all contaminants, is delivered.This floating intake avoids all contact with bottom sludge, water andother impurities at the lowest level and provides a trouble-freeoperation of the burner and fewer service calls.

Essentially, this intake consists of an arm pivoted in the tank, eitheron the bottom or on a support extending downwardly from a top opening inthe tank, and the fluid intake is at the free end of the arm which isalso provided with a float.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide an apparatusextending downwardly through a hole in the top wall of the tank, whichallows the arm to be raised above the liquid level and thus, when anyrepairs are to be made in the fluid line from the tank, the delivery armis simply raised to the top of the tank, which of course, is above thefluid level and no oil can flow.

The present invention consists essentially of a hookshaped lifter whichis connected with a finger piece supported on a boss associated with atop wall opening of small dimensions and which is accessible when ascrew cap for the boss is removed. The lifter may be made from a lengthof wire, having a hook-shaped contour at its lower end and when it israised to a point that the intake head, at the free end of the conduitarm, contacts the top wall of the tank, the wire is simply bent over thethreaded boss or is otherwise secured in this elevated position. In thisfashion the intake arm remains at the top of the tank above the liquidlevel for as long as is necessary and when it is desired to return theintake head downwardly to operating location, the wire is straightenedand allowed to fall to the bottom of the tank.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a central vertical section taken through a tank fitted with apivoted fluid withdrawal arm with a floating head and equipped with thearm lifter of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is an enlarged detailed view of the arm lifter.

A conventional oil tank is shown at and it has a number of openingsincluding a filling opening 11 with a short vertical pipe section 12having a closure cap 14. It also has an end wall opening 16 near thebottom which receives an oil delivery pipe 18. A tube 19 connects theoil delivery pipe 18 with a block 20. A tubular arm 21 having a float 22at its outer end and an intake opening 25 just below the float isarranged to rise and fall with the change in the fluid level shown at24. The tubular arm 21 is connected with block by a flexible conduit 26and up and down movement of the arm is guided by pivotal members 28connected at one end on block 20 and their opposite ends to the arm.

The foregoing structure is taught in my co-pending application earliermentioned.

The tank has another opening 30 which receives a threaded fitting 31having a threaded boss 32 at its upper end and having a small throughopening 34. An elongated member 36 which forms the lifter and which maybe made from wire is connected to a finger piece 38 of larger dimensionsthan the hole 34 so that it will not pass through the hole and into thetank.

At its lower end the wire has a hook-shaped configuration shown at 39and provided with a restricted portion 40 which may have a clearancewith the main portion of the wire of less than the diameter of tubulararm 21.

When the intake assembly is first installed in the tank the arm 21passes into the hook-shaped lifter 36. When the tank is substantiallyfull and the float is near the tank top the wire simply is bent into acurved configuration or the hook portion simply rests on the tank bottomand the arm may pass out of the hook portion but it readily moves intoit again. When it is desired to raise the arm intake above the fluidlevel, a closure cap 41 is removed from the threaded boss and the wireis drawn upwardly and bent over the top of the boss as indicated at 43.

In most instances the lifter for the pivoted fluid delivery arm will beintroduced in tank at some time after the arm has been installed in thetank. The pivotal mounting for the arm is such that there is only theslightest amount of lateral movement during its up and down travel. Tocatch the arm on the hook-shaped lifter, working in the dark as onemust, is not diificult since opening 30 which receives the lifterassembly is in the center of the tank and so is the pivoted arm.

The lifter, mounted within threaded fitting 31 is first inserted intothe tank with the hook portion 39 generally parallel with the major axisof the tank. The lifter is then turned and raised and if the pivoted armhas not been ensnared, as it were, the operation is repeated after thehook has been rotated 90 in the other direction. It is simple to detectthe hook having attached itself to the arm since the arm has someweight. The fitting 31 is now screwed into the tank and the cap 41screwed into place. When it is desired to completely cut oil flow of theoil, the cap is removed and the lifter raised until the floating headhits the top wall of the tank. The wire is now bent over the top of theboss as indicated at 43. Alternatively, a pointed, tapered pin may beinserted into hole 34 as a wedge to keep the lifter elevated.

While there have been described herein what are at present consideredpreferred embodiments of the invention, it will be obvious to thoseskilled in the art that many modifications and changes may be madetherein without departing from the essence of the invention. It istherefore to be understood that the exemplary embodiments areillustrative and not restrictive of the invention, the scope of which isdefined in the appended claims, and that all modifications that comewithin the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are intendedto be included therein.

What I claim is:

A tank for fluids having therein a fluid delivery arm which is pivotedlymounted at one end in said tank and 3,208,648 3 4 is provided with afloating head at its opposite end and References Cited by the Examinerfurther provided with a fluid intake opening arranged to UNITED STATESPATENTS lie just below the level of the fluid, in combination therewith,a lifter for the arm which is mounted within an 558131 4/96 Warren222464 opening in a fitting to be received in threaded relation in 5FOREIGN PATENTS a central opening in the top wall of the tank, saidlifter 10,355 5/04 Great Britain.

having a hook-shaped lower end which receives and supports the pivotedarm when the lifter is raised, and means LOUIS DEMBO Pnmmy Examl'wr' forsecuring the lifter in elevated position within the fitting. 1O HADD S.LANE, Examiner.

